Of Demons and Men
by SorainaSkye
Summary: Xander/Anya, Buffy POV, mentions of past Buffy/Angel. "A while ago I promised myself I would man up…and I can make the same promise here." An alternate 'Hells Bells'.


Title: Of Demons and Men

Rating: T, for mild language

Summary: Xander/Anya, Buffy POV, mentions of past Buffy/Angel. "A while ago I promised myself I would man up…and I can make the same promise here." An alternate 'Hells Bells'.

This is a sort of prequel to what I hope will be a much longer fanfiction someday: a rewrite of season 7 with many returning characters, as well as some new ones, and hopefully the ability to make the potentially cool idea from season 7 become more realized. In any case, this is my first BTVS fic, and oddly enough it is about one of my least favorite characters: Xander Harris. He had an odd funny line, but I really don't like him, for reasons I'll not list here because no one needs a super lengthy and rambling author's note before the story. However, in a strange turn of events, I really liked Xander paired with Anya, even if I liked Anya much more as a character. One thing I've never understood within the Buffy/Angel 'verse is that Joss seems to be under the impression that he can't have any of his characters in a lasting relationship, and it pisses me the hell off, as did Xander leaving Anya at the altar. Dude, Joss, characters staying together will not ruin the show.

Disclaimer: Can you guess what would happen if this show was mine? Not whatever is going on in that Season Eight comic, that's for sure.

Enjoy, and reviews are much appreciated!

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><p>Somehow, and Buffy couldn't say <em>how<em>, she'd actually been convinced that he whole thing would go smoothly, despite the number of demons in attendance.

_Still_, she thought ruefully, ducking as a vase went flying her way, flowers scattering everywhere, _it was actually the humans that started this whole damn thing._

"Please!" She called, trying to get her voice over the shouts of the demons and humans alike. "Everyone calm down!"

She saw Dawn apprehensively moving a present that seemed to be wiggling away from the crowd, and made a mental note to have whatever the hell it was given a leash. Down the way, Willow and Tara were moving just out of the fray, seeming to have to resist the urge to be kissing each other despite the war zone the wedding was turning out to be.

"This happen a lot?" Buffy asked the minister, who was leaning against the wall, casually flipping through the Bible.

The minister shrugged. "More often than you'd think. Usually the participants have less…" he paused. "Skin complaints. Usually I find its best to just let them calm down."

Buffy pulled the microphone closer. "Hey! Come on people, stop this!"

Buffy saw Anya talking to some gigantic demon with grey skin and yellow eyes that she didn't recognize, and hoped Anya was figuring out where Xander had gone. Xander, being Xander, would of course go missing at the worst possible moment.

"Everyone!" She tried again, starting to step closer to the crowd in hopes of maybe pulling a few apart. "Please just-"

The tall, yellow-eyed demon hit Anya across the face, sending her staggering back.

"_Anya_!" Buffy called, sprinting for the demon, stopping just in time to keep from crashing into Mr. Harris and the demon with tentacles.

"-love to see you cry," The yellow-eyed bastard was cooing to Anya, and Buffy's heart clenched as Anya wiped at her eyes. Today was supposed to be her special day. A day of light.

"And now," the demon continued, "I'd love to see you scream."

Faster than Buffy could blink, he swiped at Anya with long claws, sending her crashing to the ground, her scream piercing the air.

"Anya!" Buffy wasted no time being polite; she shoved the other two combatants out of the way, and grabbed the chair they'd been using, stumbling over her dress on the way.

_No one's hurting my friends. Not today._

The chair slammed into the demon's face, sending him stumbling backward. Anya lay crumpled on the floor, tears in her eyes and blood dripping from scratches on her arm. Buffy stumbled, trying to keep her balance with the dress wrapped around her.

"God _dammit_," Buffy hissed, ripping at her bridesmaid's dress, creating a slit long enough for her to move more freely.

Several things happened at once.

The yellow-eyed demon lunged for Anya, pulling her up and pressing his claws against her throat.

A few more vases flew past them, crashing into the wall as the shouts from the brawl escalated.

The door opened, and Xander walked in, his eyes deadened; something Buffy saw every day she looked in the mirror.

"Come any closer and I'll kill her," The demon hissed, drawing one claw slowly across Anya's neck for emphasis, a line of blood appearing.

Xander looked up at this voice, and saw Anya trapped in the demon's arms. Life came to his eyes again, along with pure fury and fear. "_Anya_!" He charged forward with nothing but his fists. The demon looked around while Anya cried out Xander's name, reaching for him with one hand.

Buffy kicked the demon in the leg, not wasting a moment as he grunted and dropped Anya; she immediately punched him square in the face.

As she fought the demon, she saw Xander and Anya talking out of the corner of her eye. The dead look had entered Xander's face again.

She ducked a punch, and ran between the bride and groom. "Excuse me!" Ripping the veil of the mounted buffalo head-thingy, she kicked the demon, sending him sprawling to the ground, and wrapped the veil around his neck, pulling it tightly. The demon spluttered, gasping and writhing-

A white pedestal slammed onto his face. Buffy looked up in surprise, seeing Xander lift the pedestal and drop it on the demon again, not saying a word.

The demon twitched once, and then stopped moving.

"Its dead." Xander set the pedestal off to the side, still staring at the demon.

"Yup." Buffy noticed for the first time that there were no sounds of fighting going on behind her. She turned and saw that everyone was staring at them. _How to explain this? Shit._

Without warning, the crowd burst into applause. Buffy tried to exchange a look with Xander, but he was staring straight ahead. She reached out to touch his arm- she _really_ didn't like the look on his face- but then Willow and Tara walked over.

"Maybe we should cover it with flowers?" Willow suggested, cocking her head at the corpse. She looked at Xander, her eyebrows coming together. "Xander, are you-"

"I'm not paying for this, you _freaks_!"

"Here we go again," Dawn muttered, as the furious demons retaliated, and soon everyone was exchanging blows again.

Anya, who had been standing by Xander, seemingly in shock, seemed to pull herself together. Her back straightened, her eyes brightened, and she stepped forward, every bit the Anya-that-used-to-be-a-vengence-demon-and-is-totally-not-above-kicking-your-ass. "_Stop it_!"

The crowd froze, a few with fists raised, others already on the floor, staring at her, the bloodied bride in a torn dress.

Anya stepped forward again, and Buffy couldn't help but smirk a little as the crowd seemed to shrink back. Out of the people in the room, Buffy was really the only one that could certifiably kick everyone's ass without any magical help, but in that moment Anya seemed like she could too.

"This wedding will go on, so _get back in your seats_!" She pointed vehemently at the overturned chairs, and everyone jumped, quickly turning them back over and setting them up in slightly crooked rows.

The tension seemed to seep out of the air as the minister resumed his place at the head, and quiet settled in the room. Anya turned around and tucked some hair behind her ear, and walked up to Xander, smiling just a little.

"You know, its bad luck to see me in my dress." She took his hand, and Buffy started to turn away, smiling, when she noticed Xander's expression again.

He seemed to be in a daze, not really focusing on Anya, or the people around. He didn't even answer her, his gaze dropping to their clasped hands.

_I really don't like the look on his face._ She couldn't quite place it; there was something that seemed almost…horrified. He blinked as Anya said something Buffy couldn't quite catch, and he gave a slow nod.

Anya reached forward and touched his face. "It wasn't real, Xander, you know that."

He nodded again, still slowly. "I know."

She gave a slight, fragile, smile, and dropped her hand. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Okay. Let's get married."

Xander let her hand slip through his, and he walked to the front of the aisle, standing by the priest. Willow, after one last look at Tara, went up to join him in her place as best man. Buffy took her place as well, lining up with Tara, waiting for the music to start.

She frowned, watching Xander. He was staring straight ahead, and seemed to be…trembling? It was like he was afraid, but not of what was going on. If anything, she realized, it reminded her of how Angel had been sometimes. Afraid of himself- that he might hurt her, that he might loose himself. She quickly turned her thoughts away from Angel. Even after all this time, thinking about him still brought a strangely sweet ache, and she cursed herself for it.

Looking at Xander, she knew he would've done anything he could to keep from hurting Anya, but it still didn't make any sense. How could Xander hurt Anya? Sure, he could be stupid and was jealous sometimes, but so was Anya, and unless he was afraid of dropping some spare lumber on her head-

Xander's eyes flicked to his parents, who appeared to be arguing in not-quite-hushed voices, and everything made sense.

_Oh, Xander._ She found Willow's eyes and jerked her head toward Xander. Willow nodded, biting her lip, and whispered something to him that Buffy couldn't catch. Xander didn't even look at her, but nodded slightly.

The music started, and Buffy straightened up, trying not to trip over a broken vase. She kicked it out of the way, and fixed a smile on her face. Willow whispered something else to Xander, and he glanced back at her this time. He nodded again, before turning to face the front, staring resolutely ahead.

Buffy made it up to the front, and exchanged an uneasy glance with Willow.

"What is it, Buffy?" Dawn whispered, nudging her slightly.

"Nothing. I hope," Buffy whispered back, turning slightly to get a better look at Xander. _Damn, he looks like he wants to run. Damn, damn, damn!_

Anya finally started walking up the aisle. The honor of escorting her would have gone to Giles, had he been able to come. Instead, it was thanks to him that there had been so many flowers- plenty even to cover up a demon corpse. Anya walked alone up the aisle, toward the person she thought would be supporting her from then on.

_Don't run Xander._

Things had to be capable of working out for someone, right? She'd loved Angel more than she would ever love anyone again- still loved him that much. No one, not Riley or even Spike, had been able to change that, but still she and Angel couldn't last. Sometimes she dreamed of him coming back for her, but she knew it wasn't going to happen. Xander and Anya were supposed to be different. They were supposed to last and have a family and live, be happy, because god knew that no one else around Buffy was allowed to be happy. She felt tears prick her eyes again, and blinked them back.

Xander was facing Anya, but his eyes seemed unfocused still. Anya's smile dropped a little at his expression, but she kept walking forward, and as she stood beside him their hands linked.

"Dearly beloved," The minister began, his voice reverberating around the room, "we are gathered here today to join this man and this woman in the bonds of holy matrimony."

She saw Xander's hand tighten a little in Anya's and Buffy felt like she could breathe again. Drowning out the rest of the minister's words, she tried to focus on Xander's face, get a hint if he was still too stunned to be thinking clearly, or if he really did want to run. He still looked like he was a million miles away, but there was something different about his expression now, determined, almost.

The minister was reaching the end of his speech. "You have the opportunity to go forward from this day to create a faithful, kind, and tender relationship. We bless you this day. It is up to you to keep the blessings flowing each and every day of your lives together. We wish for you the wisdom, compassion, and constancy to create a peaceful sanctuary in which you can both grow in love." He turned to Xander. "Xander Harris, do you understand and accept this responsibility, and do you promise to do your very best each day to create a loving, healthy, and happy marriage?"

Silence rang in the room for a moment, and fear and sadness seized Buffy's heart again.

Slowly, Xander nodded. "I do."

Anya's hand gripped his back harder.

The minister repeated the question to Anya, who nodded as well, her voice choked with tears. "I do."

The minister nodded. "Now, your vows."

Anya and Xander turned a little to face each other, and Anya stepped a little toward him. From this angle, Buffy could see that the fear had slowly begun to leave his face, but she still didn't like how _blank_ he looked. Anya cleared her throat, and began speaking.

"Xander," She said, and he looked up more at his name, a little light seeming to reach his eyes. Her words seemed to stumble over each other, and she started again. "I, Anya, want to marry you, Xander, because…I love you." She took a deep breath, trying to speak around the tears that seemed to be clogging her throat. "I'll always love you. B-before I knew you, I was such a different person. Not even a person," she admitted, and Buffy heard a few stifled laughs from the demon crowd. "I'd seen what love could-could do to people. It-it was sadness, and pain. Alone was better. And then suddenly, you were there, and-and you knew me. You _saw_ me."

A smile was working its way up Xander's face, and he looked more alive than he had all day. Relief washed over Buffy. They could still be the light at the end of her tunnel.

"You-you make me feel safe, and warm, and wanted. I- I finally get love, Xander. I really do." The last three words were almost a whisper, and Anya took a deep breath, trying to steady herself, stepping back a little for Xander to do his vows.

Again, silence took over the room for a moment. Xander looked down at their hands, and then looked up. He was smiling. "I, Xander, want to marry you, Anya." His voice was quiet and deep, every syllable sincere. "But I haven't been totally honest with you, and I'm- I'm sorry." He stepped closer. "See, the thing is. I-I've been scared. That I would only hurt you, if we did this. That I would end up-" his eyes flicked to his dad again, and he stopped. "And- and I know I can't let that happen. Ever. Because if I did…If I hurt you, then I wouldn't be worth anything. I was so scared, Ahn," he whispered, closing his eyes for a moment. "Then…then I saw you, today, here, with all our friends and family, and I-I knew I could make sure that it wouldn't happen, that I would never hurt you. I love you, Anya. I'll never stop loving you, because you- you drive me crazy, you know? A while ago, I promised myself that I would man up; get a job, a house, and I did. It was hard, but, I did it, and I thought, I can make the same promise here. I'll man up. I'll stay with you, because I love you, and I want you to be happy, and I want to spend the rest of my days making you happy." He stepped even closer, and kissed her forehead, tears shining in his eyes. "And- and if we ever forget, and get too busy, or get mad because of bills or- or whatever, then we'll have to remind each other about today. About this. And- and things will be good, I promise. I- I love you, Anya."

The minister was smiling. "You may now exchange the rings."

Buffy felt tears falling steadily down her face, and knew she wasn't the only one. Dawn and Tara were sniffling beside her, and Willow's own face was streaked with tears, even while she grinned.

The rings were slipped on their fingers, and before the words were even all the way out of the minister's mouth, Anya had thrown her arms around Xander and kissed him. The crowd cheered and Buffy felt like jumping up and down- so she did, a little. Xander twirled Anya around, smiling so wide his face could've split, and the light was there. Buffy saw it, surrounding them. It had never been extinguished; it did in fact exist, could exist. They could be happy.

_Maybe I…someday…_

She joined in the laughter and the cake eating, and soon it was as if Xander and Anya had spread the light around, illuminating everyone and everything. Anya wanted pictures in every sort of position imaginable (even a few that made Buffy want to cover Dawn's eyes) and Xander seemed to be firing off one-liners as if he'd written them down beforehand.

Buffy smiled, thinking of the boy she had first met, years ago. _He's grown up. Guess I have too._

Anya and Xander's hands stayed clasped together, and sometimes they would just kiss, and smile, simply because they were happy, and would continue to be.


End file.
